Reasons NOT To Go Cakeless: Number 1
by Mutant of Time
Summary: Michael Jones has grown up all his life believing he wouldn't have a soulmate, his world wouldn't be colorful, but everyone else sees what's coming before he does. AU where your world is black and white until you meet your soulmate. Michael Jones/Gavin Free, total fluff. Enjoy! :D Cover by life-writer on tumblr. Go check out the sequel too, "A Cakeless Intermission"! :D


**AN: Oh no, it's my first Achievement Hunter fanfiction, likewise my first Mavin fic. I'll probably look back at this later and hate it, but for a first fic, I think it's alright :)**

**Based on an AU where you see in black and white until you meet your soulmate.**

**With an added twist ;)**

**Disclaimer: Cover art belongs to the lovely life-writer on tumblr uwu**

* * *

Your name is Michael Jones, the year was 2012, near the beginning, and you'd been working in the RoosterTeeth office for a while now, creating the web sensation "Rage Quit" series. You're officially the 3rd member of Achievement Hunter, for which Ray gave you shit for because _he_ wanted to be the 3rd member, and you fucking _love_ it. Working with Geoff and Jack was great, and you'd met a lot of other fantastic people in the office.

There was Matt, Gus, and Burnie, who'd intimidated you _just_ a little, at first, but you became more comfortable. There was a nice intern, Lindsay, and a cool crew guy named Ryan. Then there's the people who you don't really talk to, because they aren't in your branch, but you still know them by name.

And then, there's _Gavin_.

When you'd met him, he shook your hand eagerly, his eyes lit like a Christmas tree, and you blamed your dizziness on the large amounts of Red Bull you'd been drinking. You shook his hand, and then swatted at him when he held on for a second too long. Immediately, you knew you couldn't _hate_ him, per say, because he was just..

You couldn't explain it at the time. He was just _Gavin_.

He became the huge doofus who'd smile cheekily at everything anyone said, who'd laugh along when people made fun of him, who'd do incredibly stupid things and just grin.

He was the huge doofus who'd place his hand on your shoulder when he laughed, who's eyes would scrunch up as he smiled at you, who would troll the shit out of you in video games.

The doofus who'd run screaming from soggy bread.

The doofus who'd sit in while you filmed Rage Quit, thus eventually creating Play Pals.

The doofus who would spill Red Bull on your keyboard and curl in on himself as you punched him.

You never really _hurt_ him though. You couldn't do that.

You couldn't do it because he was the doofus who spontaneously lit up your world when you thought nobody ever would.

It didn't happen right away, and it was completely unexpected when it did.

You were always way too caught up in your own shit, your own black and white world to see the looks Gavin would give you. You always gave him shit for the way he'd find stupid reasons to casually touch you, but you never knew why.

Literally everybody but you could see it, because little to your knowledge, Jack and Geoff would 'gossip' behind your back. They knew what was going on.

They gave Gavin just as much shit as you did, but they had a certain amount of sympathy for him sometimes that you just didn't understand.

Gavin would make some dumb comment about you, and sometimes Geoff would just shake his head, or Jack would just chuckle a little.

"I'll give you my heart, Michael."

"Yeah, whatever Gavin," you'd laugh it off, because leave it to Gavin to say dumb shit like that. What an idiot.

* * *

The year is yet again 2012, but it was later this time. You'd been having a conversation with Geoff,

"So I've been thinking about hiring this new kid full time." This gets your attention. Gavin was already hired officially a while ago, so that leaves...

"Yeah?" you ask, waiting for more while you edit your most recent Rage Quit video.

"Yeah. He's been making Achievement Guides for us for quite a while now, and he's really active in the community. Kid's got a good attitude and I think he'd be able to contribute here more with a full time job."

You almost spit out your Red Bull, your suspicions are confirmed, Ray was going to shit himself about this. Well, so were you, but you did your best to remain calm on the outside.

"Oh, you talking about Ray?" you ask calmly, as if you were only half paying attention.

"Yeah, the Narvaez Jr. kid. You know him?" Geoff asks you, and you only hesitate a little.

"Y-yeah, I grew up with him, actually. He's a really good friend of mine. Has a fucking impressive gamerscore on Xbox, too," you throw in. "He's literally the shit at every video game ever."

"I'm surprised you never brought him up," Geoff comments, and you shrug.

"I've talked 'bout him a few times, I guess. Just ask Gavin."

"So you think he'd be a good employee here?"

"Fuck yeah." There's no hesitation this time.

Ray was going to get fucking hired, and you give him the news later that night.

The phone rings a few times, exactly three, before Ray answers, because he's a cool kid like that.

"Dude," you spit out as you hear the click of him answering the phone.

"Michael? Sup, dude?"

"You'd better sit your skinny ass down, because I'm about to tell you some really great shit."

"Oh man, this feels like some "really great shit" indeed. What happened? Did you find twenty bucks on the ground? Or meet your soulmate? No wait, I got it, Gavin professed love to you."

You hear Ray's snickers and roll your eyes. He's the one who started this "Mavin" shit and now the fanbase won't shut the hell up about it. Sure, it's kind of a funny joke, but you've got serious shit to tell him.

"No, fuck no, fuck you, you dick. Just sit the fuck down before you miss the chance, because I'm about to spoon feed your pathetic lit-

"Alright alright, consider my ass sat. What's up?" Ray asks, thus interrupting you, and he's way too casual about this. You wonder if he already knows.

"Well..." you add in a long pause for dramatic effect.

"Well?"

"Shut the fuck up, Ray. I'm trying to be dramatic here."

"My bad, go on."

You pause a few moments before finally spitting it out.

"Welcome to Achievement Hunter."

* * *

It's at Ray's "Congratulations, you fuck, you're hired at the dumbest company in this state" party that the unexpected happens, and Ray witnesses the entire thing.

You're carrying your slice of cake, only yours because when you asked Ray if he wanted any, he replied,

"Nah, I'm going cakeless." What an asshat. This is _his_ party and he's not even going to have cake, that's basically the dumbest thing you've ever heard of. Whatever, _he_ can go cakeless, but you're going to have all the cake you damn well pleased.

Rather, you were _going_ to.

You turn around to head back onto a couch when one large-nosed-fucknut runs right the fuck into you. It's like slow motion, which is ironic as hell because

Gavin Free is the "Slow Mo Guy" at RoosterTeeth, as his counterpart, Dan, still lives in England, working in the British army when Gavin isn't dragging him around to film stupid shit for their YouTube channel.

Anyways, the cake smears all of you, and you can see Ray pointing and laughing at you from his spot on the couch in good nature, but his face slowly becomes more serious when he realizes what's going on with you. You're sure he's the _only_ one who realizes, because he grew up with you.

The noise is muffled, the world is slowed, and not because of the dumb slow motion cake smear.

Gavin Free's right hand touches your left bicep and he's gripping it, turning you around slowly and you can barely make out his words.

"Oh my god, Michael," his stupid accent making it sound like "Micoo", "I'm sorry," he says through a laugh, a grin spread across his face, but you know he means the words. "Let's get you cleaned up."

You scowl, looking down at the ruined cake, your ruined shirt, a curse making it's way out of your mouth but coming short when you look up at Gavin's face.

His eyes are the first to change. Green, a beautiful green, you don't know how you know the name of the color but you just do, like it's second nature because it's Gavin and you're with Gavin and just-

Your world lights up in a burst of fireworks, that's when your eyes widen, that's when Ray's mouth drops open because he knows, you know that he knows.

You're frozen in place, electricity coursing through your veins and vibrating with such an intensity that you're shaking because you are 25 years old and you're seeing _color_.

You don't know why it's happening now and with _Gavin_ of all people, why it didn't happen before and you're looking around to see if it's anyone else that had accidentally touched you but _no_, it's just _Gavin Fucking Free _and you don't know _why_.

"Michael, are you okay?" Gavin asks, his voice shaking you out of your trance, and he simultaneously lets go of you, and the colors shatter.

They're still there, but not _near_ as intense as they were when Gavin had touched you. But they're _there_.

"Y-yeah," you stutter, and you're confused, because why isn't Gavin reacting in the same way you did?

Shouldn't he be experiencing the same thing? _Unless..._

Unless you aren't _Gavin's_ soulmate.

"D-don't... didn't you see it, too?"

Gavin raises an eyebrow and tilts his head, confused. "What are you talking about?"

You take a step back, back towards the couches, towards Ray, and with each step you take the world grays out because Gavin is still standing there and he's still grinning and holding napkins like the idiot he is because he doesn't understand what's wrong.

Ray does.

"I'll clean him up," Ray tells Gavin, taking the napkins from him.

You can't handle the overstimulating feelings you get when Ray grips your arm and walks you past Gavin, because everything intensifies as you walk near him again, but then you're walking away, you're walking towards the bathroom and everything is getting quieter and duller and it feels way less overwhelming, but way more at the same time.

He doesn't speak until you get into the bathroom, and he closes it behind you.

"Shirt off."

You surrender the article of clothing, allowing Ray to clean the fabric in the sink with water and soap and flimsy napkins.

"Michael."

You don't answer, you're kind of unresponsive because you don't know what just happened, but at the same time, you know _exactly_ what just happened.

Ray presses you, though. He's not going to let this go.

"Michael, we both know what happened back there."

"Gavin doesn't," you snap.

"You don't know that," Ray immediately quips, "He could just be good at hiding it."

"Why would he _want_ to hide it, though?"

"Fuck, I don't know," Ray answers, shaking your shirt in the air in a pitiful attempt to dry it. He ends up hanging it over the towel bar, and takes a wet napkin to your face to clean that up, too. "Maybe he didn't want to make a scene?"

"Oh yeah, because finding out that I'm his _soulmate_ is such a big scene, right?"

Ray doesn't answer that, instead asking, "Why didn't you feel it before, Michael?"

"I.. don't know. I've spent over a fucking year with this douchebag and he's touched me plenty of-" you catch yourself and glare at Ray, who's trying to hide a smile. "Not like _that_. He's come into _contact_ with me plenty of times and I've never felt so much as a spark."

"And what if he has? What if this isn't new for him?"

That gets gears turning in your head. _You_ could just be one of those people that has to be _around_ the person for a long time before your soulmate connection will spark. You always thought those people were _whackjobs_, though.

_Gavin_ on the other hand, could've felt it immediately that first day when greeting you, giving you a handshake and holding on just a second...

Too long.

Gavin held your hand for a second too long, and _you_ swatted him away.

It's completely possible that he'd felt it _long_ before you did.

"Oh.."

"Yeah, "oh" is right, asshole. Stop being a baby and just go _talk_ to him," Ray urges you, drying your face off and handing you your shirt back. You put it on quickly, grumbling as you put in another factor that is slowly destroying your hope.

"But he.. I asked him. He said he didn't know what I was talking about."

"Maybe because _it isn't new_ for him, Michael. Now _go _and make out with the love of your life, idiot."

You hesitate, but go anyways.

"Yeah, yeah."

When you finally take a deep breath and walk out of that bathroom, you _swear_ that Gavin's eyes light up when he sees you, just like they did on that very first day, and every step you take towards him adds color to your world. You don't think it could ever get old, no wonder your parents made such a big deal out of it.

"Hi Michael!" he greets you cheerfully.

"Yeah, hi fucknut. Can we go and.. talk? About uh, the next Play Pals." You try to sound casual, try not to sound as excited as you are about your world being _lit the fuck up._

"Right now? It can't wait until later?"

"No, it can't," you say sternly, and Gavin frowns.

"Well you don't have to be so bloody grumpy about it."

"Just c'mon," you mumble, taking his hand and clenching your teeth to prevent from shivering, because you're getting that _actual_ sparking feeling all over again.

"Outside?" Gavin questions as you lead him out there, and when you let go of his hand, you fold your arms, looking away.

"Look, you're so goddamned gullible. I'm not here to talk about Play Pals. I'm here to talk about the fucking cake."

"I already _told_ you, Michael. I'm _sorry_," Gavin whines, running a hand through his hair.

As if he was.

Nervous.

"I don't care about the _smear_, I'm here to say..."

You trail off. You hadn't prepared for this. What do you say?

_'Yeah, you see, you're sorta my soulmate and I just realized it now.'_

_'I don't know about you but some serious shit went down back there.'_

_'Baby you light up my world like nobody else.'_

Okay fuck no, your thoughts are just getting worse and worse.

Fuck it all.

"I guess this might be awkward but what the fuck ever, this is important to me," you start. Gavin waits patiently for you to continue, though he _definitely_ looks nervous now.

"W-when we were back there and you ran into me like a dumbass, you grabbed my arm and I... saw. Color. I fucking saw color, and you didn't seem like you did and I just don't know what the fuck to do because in what universe would some fucked up higher power give someone a soulmate that doesn't match, it's so fucking stupid and-"

You're cut off. Very suddenly. By something soft, by something _Gavin_.

By his lips. By a kiss. It catches you off guard, needless to say, because you never expected him to be

so upfront or spontaneous.

Then again, you kind of did. Just not like this.

If you thought your emotions were vivid _before_, you might as well just be using your entire nervous system in this moment because you're pretty much swept off of your feet, you feel like you're going to pass out because you get so lightheaded, the colors everywhere are so vivid and maybe _this_ is why people close their eyes when they kiss.

You do, and the fireworks show becomes even better.

You hadn't realized how long you'd been kissing Gavin, but it's long enough that when he pulls away, you're breathless.

"Oh Michael," he breathes, and your heart skips a beat with what he says next.

"I've _always_ seen color with you."

You swear your grin becomes almost as big as his, and you can only mutter _"Asshole"_ before he's kissing you again.

And in the distance, you hear Ray call from the house.

"Fuckin' got 'em!"


End file.
